Achilles
by Momosportif
Summary: Two little drabbles, first from Mugen's POV, second from Jin's, while witnessing the other in a vulnerable state. Fairly maudlin, so be warned if maudlin equates OOC, I tried. Watanabe's boys, please enjoy.
1. Inflexible

You don't look right there.

It's not because your glasses are off or your hair is down. It's not even because I can see so much of your skin – that you practically glow against the dead wood of the restaurant.

You're scared, and I never wanted to see that.

If I'd had one more drink, I wouldn't even believe it was you, I'd walk my ass out of the doorway, stop pissing off the other customers trying to come in or out, and not look twice. Best time to be low on cash.

I think this is what they call morbid curiosity- I'm staring at your face, your fists, the way your back is shaking and it makes me sick.

How could that shadow with his hands on your wrists leave those little red welts and those little yellow spots (and the big blue ones too)?

Gods, how long ago did you leave the table – did he get you right off?

Have you been out here all this time, too fucking scared to scream?

I don't want to see anymore. I've been against the wall. But I can tell it's new for you, you're still fighting to keep yourself under control because you don't know yet that being quiet while it happens still won't leave you with a scrap of honor, like I don't know yet that watching is going to screw me over good.

You're losing control, so I'm losing you.

My Jin is never scared.

So who are you and why am I walking down the alley with my hand around the hilt of my sword? Why am I drawing the –

to bring you back I slide it in between his ribs and see his blood drip from his chest along your spine.

Just a shadow, now it's gone, I'm right behind you. I guide your arms down.

"Turn around."

You still can't move. I push your shoulder back so you remember how to turn. You won't look at me. I wish I couldn't see these eyes, too wide, too ready to break.

"Sit down."

You try your damned hardest, but you just fall forward, and I catch you, which is better anyway because now I don't have to look at your face.

Your clothes are messy, and that should tick you off bad. The blood should make you sneer. And you should curse the fact I'm daring to hold your body this way, but you're not right here, so nothing happens.

I lean against the wall behind me and inch us to the ground, pushing the shadow man away from your legs.

"Jin…" why didn't you fight? why didn't you shout? why didn't you run? "everyone cries the first time…"

I never thought I'd see you give the upper hand, I knew there must be sometime, not even _you_ can call yourself perfect, but you come so damn close. I thought I could keep you constant because you'd rather die than waiver, but I saw you scared and now I'll always know.

I watched you broken.

Someone's mouth was on this neck. I can't feel the spit though. I can't feel my heel in the blood, I can't feel my palm on the swelling flesh.

I just feel the tears, warm on my skin.


	2. Intelligable

You're going to hate me for seeing you like this, and you're going to forget you ever lapsed. I'm sorry. I had no intention of intruding; I have every intention to now.

So often I have seen the sins of holy men, but never did I suppose that they had contrived such a torment it could rob _you_ of your pomp (I swore was inexhaustible). Such simple words wash out the lights behind your eyes.

Just words.

Yet so much worse than wounds. You cannot see these cuts, they took away the ground and now I see you – cockerel with the head chopped off.

He spews damnation in your face and it clouds the air, rolls down your throat, and eats away the fight that inflates your being. A sliver of you stands petrified, mouth agape to swallow each demon he speaks into you.

"They claw," they claw, "they bite," they bite, "they drag you down and crack your skull a thousand times into infinity!"

You flinch at your name.

I wish I'd been here when you stepped on his foot or bumped his arm so the flood had never come. It's cheating, using words against a mind like yours, an unmatched duel reduced to slaughter. You cannot slice the sounds, you cannot see their movements. I watch them clearly, follow their steps against your slackened jaw and bite my lip with every wince in response.

It is my duty to intervene, I will implore you to understand when the time arrives for you to hate me.

We do not have to remember that you were weak, that I stepped in, that you could not fight back, or that you were beaten. I will not stand by while a battle is fought for the sake of ego. With tongues or swords you fight for honor, even you know this, and so you cannot attack in the face of a pure bully. Adaptive, but even so, not amply to feel out this playing field.

I come to break the spell, stand behind you on the inn room's threshold. Hell's flames, hell's demons, the days of no sun, you've lived through ten times worse, I know.

It's just the words.

"That's enough religion for now, jiji."

He's stolen all your color and mouths at me like a crab, boiling in his own spittle.

"Go."

He trails profanities his order ought not to know, but all the same his voice is gone, the trance is vanished. And I will too, except you turn to me and look straight into my eyes. There I see fear. So much unknown at once, you cannot even ask me 'what?'.

I answer all the same.

"Lies," I shake my head. "He doesn't know what he's talking about."

I will shake my head again, shake until you do the same and I know you understand.

"Lies, Mugen, just lies."

"Okay."

You know.

"Okay."

You shake.

"Okay."

I will forget that you closed the distance and that your head is on my shoulder and that your nose is pressed against my neck (and that it is soft).

Always I will remember not to hurt you with my words.


End file.
